Tag Archives: Hugh L. Carey Tunnel

A third-generation Flushing construction firm was awarded a contract worth $282.5 million to repair the Hugh L. Carey Tunnel from damage it suffered during Superstorm Sandy.

Tully Construction beat out 24 companies for the contract to work on the former Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel. The contract is the largest ever awarded to a construction company from the MTA Bridges and Tunnels division, the organization announced Monday.

The project is expected to take four years.

“We learned just how vital the HLC Tunnel is to the region in 2012 after Superstorm Sandy flooded the tunnel with approximately 60 million gallons of brackish water, compromising the life safety systems in the tunnel,” MTA Bridges and Tunnels President James Ferrara said. “This project will increase the level of resiliency against future weather events.”

Tully Construction will replace the traffic control and communications systems, add new lighting, replace the drainage system, do concrete repairs, add new wall titles, rehabilitate the Brooklyn toll plaza, repave the tunnel, and conduct a clean-up of salt, oil and other contaminants from Sandy flooding.

Starting at 2 a.m. Saturday and ending at 5 a.m. Monday, the Queens-bound tube of the Queens-Midtown Tunnel will be closed to traffic to repair damage from Sandy.

The remaining tube will be open to two-way traffic and can be used by cars and New York City buses, but commercial traffic will need to find an alternate route.

From Manhattan, vehicles can enter the tunnel at 34th Street between Second and Third avenues, and from Queens can use the regular 37th Street exit for uptown traffic and take the Marginal tunnel exit to 38th Street, then to Second Avenue to go downtown. The 34th Street and Second Avenue ramps will be closed to traffic exiting in Manhattan.

Drivers should expect delays during the closure and can use either the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge or the Hugh L. Carey Tunnel as an alternate route.

Monday: Overcast. High of 50. Winds from the NE at 10 to 15 mph. Monday night: Partly cloudy. Low of 39. Winds from the NE at 5 to 10 mph.

EVENT of the DAY: Snowflake Lighting

Kids can meet Santa Claus and have their photo taken with him. There will also be face painting, balloon twisting and a holiday arts and crafts station. At 5 p.m., Macy’s wil light up its Snowflake, marking the official start of the holiday season. Click here for more info or to submit an event of your own

Sketch released in mosque stabbing; possible hate crime

It is crystal clear when looking at Bashir Ahmad that the 57-year-old cheated death. He is covered with stitches, almost too many to count. Read more: ABC New York

NYC gas rationing continues through Friday

New York City has extended its odd-even gas rationing system through Friday. Read more: Wall Street Journal

24-year-old woman killed in late night Queens crash after failing to stop at intersection, slamming into speeding car

A 24-year-old woman died after she drove her car into a Queens intersection and was crushed by a speeding Mercedes early Sunday, cops and witnesses said. Read more: New York Daily News

Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel reopens Monday, more trains restored

The morning commute will get a little easier Monday for some as the Hugh Carey Tunnel, better known as the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel, reopens to cars and several train lines are restored. Read more: NBC New York

The NYPD added a hate-crimes detective to the hunt for a serial killer who may be targeting Brooklyn shopkeepers of Middle Eastern descent — and continues to strike fear in business owners worried they will be next. Read more: New York Daily News

Manhattan Borough President Stringer announces fun for city comptroller

Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer announced Sunday that he is running for city comptroller in 2013. Read more: NY1

Obama offers praise, pressure on historic Myanmar trip

Barack Obama became the first American president to visit Myanmar on Monday, using a six-hour trip to balance U.S. praise for the government’s progress in shaking off military rule with pressure to complete the process of democratic reform. Read more: Reuters

Monday: Overcast. Fog early. High of 63. Winds from the South at 5 to 15 mph. Monday night: Overcast with a chance of rain, then rain showers after midnight. Fog overnight. Low of 52. Winds from the South at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 80%.

EVENT of the DAY: Opening Party – Geisha: The Golden Years 1870-1890

Tonight is the opening party for the exhibition Geisha: The Golden Years 1870-1890 at the Resobox Gallery in Long Island City. The hand-colored photographs of Geisha and Maiko were used by Dr. Stanley Burns and his daughter Elizabeth to create the book, “Geisha: A Photographic History 1872-1912,” and to show the exotic nature of Japan to the West. Click here for more info or to submit an event of your own

Rockaways homeowners still without power 13 days after Hurricane Sandy

Slow-as-molasses brass of the Long Island Power Authority failed to restore electricity to a storm-battered block of Arverne in the Rockaway Peninsula — even though it passed an electrical inspection with flying colors three days ago. Read more: New York Daily News

Cuomo to seek $30 billion in aid for storm relief

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo plans to ask the federal government for at least $30 billion in disaster aid to help New York City and other affected areas of the state recover from the devastation of Hurricane Sandy, according to top administration officials. Read more: New York Times

Battery Tunnel reopens Monday morning but only for express buses into Manhattan

The Battery Tunnel will reopen Monday morning, but only for express buses into Manhattan, officials announced Sunday. Read more: New York Daily News

Gawkers head to NY’s storm-ravaged neighborhoods

Garbage trucks, hulking military vehicles and mud-caked cars move slowly through a Staten Island waterfront neighborhood still reeling from Superstorm Sandy’s storm surge. Then comes an outlier: a spotless SUV with three passengers peering out windows at a mangled home choked with sea grass. Read more: Wall Street Journal

Israeli pilot in JFK bust

An Israeli pilot was busted at Kennedy Airport for trying to bring a retractable baton onto a flight, officials said yesterday. Read more: New York Post

Info emerges about 2nd woman in Petraeus case

As questions swirl about the extramarital affair that led to the resignation of CIA Director David Petraeus, the retired general and his biographer, Paula Broadwell, have been quiet about details of their relationship. Read more: AP

The agency said that the increases will bring in “vitally needed revenue to support the New York region’s transportation system.”

The MTA is considering four options that would increase bus and subway rides.

On October 10, the New York Daily Newspublished those options ahead of time. Though the MTA would not confirm whether those were its actual proposals, the ones it revealed today did reflect the ones the paper released.

Two options keep the base fare at $2.25; the other two raise it to $2.50.

If the base fare stays the same, the cost of a weekly unlimited MetroCard would go up from $29 to $34 and the monthly from $104 to $125. The seven percent discount for every $10 put on a MetroCard would be lowered to five percent.

The second option would raise unlimited rides to $32 and $119, but eliminate the discount.

If the MTA raises the base fare to $2.50, then straphangers would keep the seven percent discount, but pay more for an unlimited MetroCard ($30 and $112).

The final option would keep weekly unlimited MetroCards at $29, and only increase the monthly by $5, but the base fare would be $2.50, and there would be no discounts.

There are also four proposals for express buses. Again, two would keep the base fare, which is currently $5.50, and the two others would raise it 50 cents. The options would also have similar trade-offs for MetroCard discounts and unlimited rides.

Most of Long Island Railroad and Metro-North tickets would go up by 8.19 to 9.31 percent, said the MTA.

These hikes would be the fourth increase in five years for subway, bus and commuter rail fares and that is one too many said public transportation advocacy group, the Straphangers Campaign, following the MTA’s fare proposals announcement.

“Blocking or reducing the fare increase is possible, if we get more help from Albany,” said Straphangers spokesperson Gene Russianoff. “One promising plan is to generate new revenue by both raising and lowering tolls on city bridges and tunnels in line with where there is the most and least congestion.”

The proposals that the MTA announced Monday would raise the tolls for many area bridges and tunnels. Though E-ZPass customers would still pay less than other drivers, everyone will be paying more.

Those increases include raising the tolls for the Queens Midtown Tunnel, Robert F. Kennedy Bridge, Throgs Neck Bridge, Bronx-Whitestone Bridge and the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel from $4.80 to $5.30 for E-ZPass holders and from $6.50 to $7.50 for other drivers.

Tolls for the Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge would go up between 12 and 33 cents, depending on whether the driver has an EZ-Pass or is a Rockaway resident.

In November, a month before the MTA votes on how it’s going to raise tolls and fares, the agency is letting the public weigh in on the options in a series of public and video forums. It is also accepting public statements via email and regular mail.

“The public will have significant input into our decision-making process. In the spirit of transparency, the public will assist in shaping our fare policy,” said MTA chairman and CEO Joseph J. Lhota. “These proposals have been designed to balance our need for revenue with public involvement. We need to hear from the public. Feedback evaluating the specific alternatives we’ve put forward is particularly useful, but we value all our customers’ input, and we’ll consider changes to our proposals based on what we hear and read.”